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Coinbase’s Position with Crypto Initiative Forms Campaign Fund and Supports Candidates Eyeing Open Congressional Seats
- Coinbase advocacy group Stand With Crypto is launching its Political Action Committee (PAC) ahead of the 2024 US presidential election, aiming to directly support congressional candidates who support cryptocurrencies.
- The PAC has more than 443,000 supporters since its inception in August 2023 and substantial financial support, including contributions from corporate figures such as Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong.
Last year, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, which started its own advocacy group – Stand With Crypto – is now opening its own Political Action Committee (PAC) ahead of the US presidential election to be held this year in 2024. This new Coinbase PAC seeks to make direct donations to congressional candidates who support cryptocurrencies, said chief strategist Nick Carr.
Stand With Crypto’s initial sponsorship slate includes five contenders vying for open positions in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate, although fundraising activities are currently suspended. Operating as a “partner PAC,” the initiative relies on contributions from its nonprofit members, each with donations limited to $5,000.
Once financial support begins to flow to the PAC, the committee will begin making direct contributions to candidates as they move through the final stages of the primaries and prepare for November’s crucial general election, the group announced Friday. While Coinbase has now launched its own PAC, it has donated to several super PACs like Fairshake in the past, which support pro-crypto candidates.
Carr said Stand With Crypto has seen solid growth in less than a year since its launch. After starting in August 2023, the organization already has more than 443,000 people who have joined. Aside from the PAC, the group reports raising more than $86 million to fuel its advocacy efforts, which include supporter rallies, town halls and even a forum for presidential candidates. Despite its portrayal as a grassroots entity, notable contributions have come from corporate figures such as Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong.
The importance of having a PAC
What distinguishes the new PAC from other major crypto campaign finance initiatives is that the latter was largely funded by a small group of major digital asset firms, contributing $10 million or more to Fairshake and the PACs related. These organizations direct unrestricted support to candidates regardless of their campaigns.
Instead, Stand With Crypto’s PAC, which serves as the political arm of the 501(c)(4) social welfare organization, will donate directly to candidates who have shown a strong understanding and dedication to crypto and blockchain innovation in the United States . Contributions to the PAC will be subject to direct donation restrictions, and unlike donations to the organization itself, donors will be required to publicly disclose their identities.
Among the approved candidates is Democrat Eddy Morales, an Oregon city councilor, who is participating in the congressional primaries and has underlined the importance of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and blockchain in promoting economic inclusion and wealth creation.
Likewise, the PAC highlighted Montana Republican and state securities regulator Troy Downing, who is running for a House seat and supports a regulatory framework that offers clarity for emerging industries like blockchain.
AS reported by Crypto News FlashCoinbase has been fighting a legal battle with the US SEC over violations of securities laws.